It all started with a well-designed laundry table. The hubs built this perfectly-dimensioned beast to make space for folding and to hold four laundry baskets on two shelves underneath. Adjacent to the shelves, there’s a slightly higher surface with hanging space underneath where the no-tumble-dry clothes live until I put them away.

It seemed like a glorious thing, built, assembled, and ready to make me a laundry-diva. Kicking dirty clothes in the bum and taking stains prisoner. 

Until it wasn’t.  Or I wasn’t.

Weeks and months went by and I felt almost every bit as frustrated with laundry as before — even though I had the perfect space to get it done.

Finally, I paused and just listened to the tension I was feeling. Why was entering the laundry room still filling me with dread?

It took me all of thirty-six seconds to place where the issue came from:

I always felt behind. Laundry always felt overwhelming. 

I gave a few minutes to ponder this dilemma and to start asking questions. Laundry isn’t going away. It makes me feel like rubbish. What am I doing wrong? How can I change this situation?

A simple “what-if” question came to the surface.

What if I create a simple routine that means I do one load every day?

I mentally scanned my morning routine and came to a conclusion: in the amount of time it takes the hubs to make our morning coffees, I could come into the laundry room and start a load every day. Around our mid-morning snack time, I could come back in and switch those clothes over to the dryer. 

Another ten minutes in the afternoon while a pot of water is boiling or dinner’s in the oven, and the load for the day is done.

It’s a simple story, right? 

A small parable of intentionality, if you will?

But it turns out doing that one load of laundry per day, even for our family of six, seems to be enough. 

I am no longer feeling overwhelmed (about laundry). And that, my friends, is a very nice feeling.

Why am I sharing this with you today? 

One simple reason.

Now is a great time to…

Pay Attention to Tension.

We’re, globally, in a season of transition. As the limits and restrictions of COVID-19 are gradually lifted and we slowly work our way towards our new normals, there will be tension.

We’re likely to wrestle with the discomfort of moving back into busier schedules.

Maybe you will feel tension about:

  • Eating Habits
  • Exercise routines
  • The screen time you’re allowing yourself or your kids
  • The number of items on your calendar

I don’t want to introduce any tension you’re not already feeling. I simply want to encourage you to take the time to slow down and observe the tension you may discover.

Sometimes tension, whether it comes to the surface as a tightening in the stomach or a pang of anxiety in the chest, is our body’s way of telling us something we’re moving too quickly to notice.

When you get the sense that there is tension, don’t immediately assume something is awfully wrong. Sometimes something as simple as adding “start a load of laundry” to your morning routine can solve the problem.

If you’re feeling tension about something bigger than the chaos of your laundry room, I have a second little piece of advice to encourage you with:

Think Big Picture, Take Baby Steps.

Start by looking at the big picture and asking where the tension is coming from. Are you feeling some tension about your eating habits? 

Great! We’ve identified something! We have information we can work with instead of a vague uneasiness plaguing our underbellies.

What is one baby step we can take to help us move forward? Let’s brainstorm.

  • Pick one night each week to add a new healthy recipe into your rotation at home.
  • Decide to only get take-out once a week, maybe Friday nights?
  • Research healthy recipes that you can double or triple and freeze and add them to the rotation.
  • Search online for a nutrition course or Master Class to help you learn more.

Look at that! We’ve gone from identifying a problem to thinking through numerous small steps that can help us work toward the bigger goal of making positive change.

You get to decide the next step, set the next goal, and keep working forward from there. Sometimes the first step is the hardest to take, but the momentum you build once you start moving will ramp up and help you push toward bigger change than you could have imagined.

As you face the season of transition ahead, I encourage you to pay attention to tension, friends. Remember, it’s often your body’s way of helping you observe something you’re moving to fast to catch on to.

Is there somewhere you’re feeling stuck today? Some tension you’re feeling that you’d like some encouragement about? 

I’d love to welcome you to hit the comment button or shoot me an email and let me know. One of my foremost goals for the year is to serve you well. I’m here for you!

I hope you’re encouraged today, friend.
If so, I’d love to welcome you to subscribe here for a weekly dose of encouragement.

Also — just in case you missed the Ten Simple Ways to Share Your Faith With Your Kids freebie I shared recently, you can find it on the brand new Parenting Resources page I ALSO created for you! Find all the good stuff at https://www.carolinecollie.com/parenting/